Many people like me desire to observe the Holy Days of Leviticus 23. However, while the laws contain eternal truths, they are couched in the technology and culture of when they were first revealed. It is difficult, if not impossible, to woodenly port these over into a modern observance; instead they need to be morphed to modern times while always being aware of the various principles expounded in the Law.
(Note that the links are to the parts of the series that I finished last year. I hope to finish the series this festival season.)
These principles include: The Principle of Worship (a Holy Convocation in the KJV Bible); The Principle of Pilgrimage (you need a critical mass of people); The Principle of the Placement of God's Name; The Principle of Temporary Shelters (booths); The Principle of Sacrifice; the Principle of Tithing (There was a separate tithe for these observances);The Principle of Community (There are aspects of community sharing); The Seasonal Principle (3 times in the year); The Principle of Decoration; The Principle of Beer Drinking (rejoicing by means of physical food consumption); and finally the principle of Education (the Torah was to be read every 7 years). To a degree these principles are in tension with each other. For example: it is difficult to construct, transport, and live in a temporary structure and travel a few hundred miles to a pilgrimage festival site; and it is difficult to listen to the Torah being read and explained and do anything else that year.
We will discuss these principles over the next few weeks in future blog posts leading up to and including the Feast of Tabernacles, and hopefully come to some conclusions about modern festival observance. I will begin tomorrow with an overview of the various festivals discussed in Leviticus 23.